What to See & Eat in Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina
What to See & Eat in
Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina
http://davidsbeenhere.com In this episode
David takes us to the capital city of
Bosnia and Herzegovina to discover
Sarajevo’s sights, sounds, and tastes. Sarajevo is a bustling capital with several historical, cultural and gastronomic stops to experience.
David starts off in the city center where he meets up with his local guide
Raza to begin the tour. The best place to start is the
Eternal Flame, located in the city center. It has burned continuously since
1946 except during the
Bosnian War 1992-1995. It is on display for everyone to see.
David and Raza then take a walk along Ferhadija, Sarajevo’s main pedestrian street that links the two different parts of the city – the
19th century buildings dating back to the
Austro-Hungarian Empire and the
Medieval district dating back to Ottoman occupation. In the mix there are also several communist-era buildings when
Bosnia existed as a republic in the Social
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (
Yugoslavia, for short).
At the point when Ferhadija
Street meets the Ottoman quarter, there is line on the floor that shows the split. All along Ferhadija Street there are shops, restaurants, cafés, and banks. It is also where the Eternal Flame is located.
Before Raza and David head into
Bascarsija (Ottoman district), they make a quick stop at the square of the
Sacred Heart Cathedral. In Bascarsija they visit the
Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque, which was built 1530.
Afterwards, Raza shows David the different ways to drink a traditional
Bosnian coffee at a local Kafana. After fueling up, David stops by
Sebilj fountain to have a sip of water.
Legend has it that anyone who drinks from the fountain will return to Sarajevo, so we’ll see if David makes his way back one day to experience more of what to see and eat in Sarajevo!
Now time for a little souvenir shopping down Coppersmith Street. Raza shows David the most typical gift one could buy here – a copper coffee pot used to serve Bosnian coffee. All this walking around made them work up quite an appetite, so they head to a bakery to try some delicious pies (cheese, spinach, and meat). The pies are baked over a coal oven and are the perfect fast food. They are also very inexpensive.
Next thing David tries is cevapi (pronounced che-vap-ee), which is pretty much the unofficial national dish of the country. Day 2 takes David and Raza to see the city from a magnificent lookout
point, Zuta Tabija, or “yellow fortress.” David recommends driving or taking a taxi there because the climb to the top is quite steep. From here you can see the center of the city and the rolling green hills in the background (in case you didn’t know, Bosnia is one of
Europe’s most lush and verdant countries).
After quickly seeing
Emperor’s Mosque, Raza takes David to see the exact spot where
Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife
Sophie, were assassinated on June 28, 1914. At the time David visited (2014) it was the 100th year anniversary of their untimely deaths. The assassination triggered the start of the
First World War. After revisiting such a pivotal point in
European history, David gets curious to see where all the bread he’s been eating comes from so Raza takes him to a nearby bakery, Pekara Alifakovac. They specialize in Somun bread, which is what is served with cevapi. This family-owned bakery churns out hundreds of Somun breads each day, and they have a pick-up window for customers on the go.
It’s very hot inside but the experience was well worth it, especially since they allowed David to eat a piece of freshly baked bread.
Last but not least, David heads outside of the city center to visit one of the most culturally significant places in Bosnia, the
Sarajevo Tunnel or
Tunnel of
Hope.
Visitors can now see a portion of a tunnel that allowed
Bosnians to smuggle in weapons and supplies during the
Siege of Sarajevo (May 1992 through
November 1995).
And there you have it, a brief intro about what to see and eat in Sarajevo. We hoped you liked it!
Travel with us at http://davidsbeenhere.com/category/blog/
Check out these other videos:
Bosnia & Herzegovina Travel
Guide
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJBsszXPtjynQDUqQS2F6Mv-7yf07deV8
What to Do in
Banja Luka, Bosnia & Herzegovina
https://youtu.be/flnFRUEQ9ac
What to See & Do in
Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina
https://youtu.be/VbApdFxiUCY
What to See & Eat in Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina
https://youtu.be/zejM1bdBtJM
Jajce Waterfall - Bosnia & Herzegovina
https://youtu.be/a1d-OcujPDQ
Medieval Ottoman
Town of
Travnik, Bosnia & Herzegovina
https://youtu.be/D-bcNaNr5jk
My name is
David Hoffmann. I am a host and travel producer. I started this company because
I believe that so much of what we are is where we’ve been.